National team players had been coerced to lose U21 match, court holds

Kyle Cesare and Emanuel Briffa have been cleared of criminal responsibility for match-fixing accusations after the court took into account the circumstances in which they were offered the bribe

Defender Emanuel Briffa (fourth from right) and midfielder Kyle Cesare (fourth from left) have been cleared of match-fixing
Defender Emanuel Briffa (fourth from right) and midfielder Kyle Cesare (fourth from left) have been cleared of match-fixing

A court has exempted Under 21 national football team players Kyle Cesare and Emanuel Briffa from criminal responsibility for their involvement in the rigging of an away game that Malta had lost to Montenegro in March 2016, holding that they had been coerced.

Up to nine Malta players had been approached and asked to be involved in fixing the match but the plan fell through after Cesare and Briffa were the only two who accepted the offer. In the sentence, which was handed down this morning, Magistrate Joe Mifsud praised the other members of Malta's National under-21 football team who had refused attempts at match-fixing, outright.

In April, footballer Seyble Zammit, a former youth player for Valletta FC, admitted to having organised the rigging of the game, but was exempted from punishment for having collaborated with the police.

Magistrate Mifsud said that it was evident that the immaturity of the two accused players had been taken advantage of. They had been affected by peer pressure or social pressure until they were guided to do the right thing by their parents.

“The pressure exerted on the players by the particular circumstances could not be easily resisted,” noted the court. The involvement of an Asian or Chinese syndicate, the constant contact with Seyble Zammit on their mobile phones had to be taken into account when deciding whether the accused had acted with free will.

Noting that in this case the accused had not taken the step of negotiating their compensation for throwing the match, the court held that the players had no alternative in the circumstances.

“It is a question of coercion when...a person who committed the criminal act could not, in the circumstances he found himself in, free himself from the external forces in any other way,” said the court.

In separate proceedings, Ronnie Mackay, 34, is accused of acting as an intermediary in the match-fixing attempts. His case is scheduled for September. It is understood that a plea bargain is being discussed for that case.

Inspector Sean Scicluna prosecuted. Lawyers Stefano Filletti, Clifton Grima and Charlene Grima appeared for the players.